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Jodie Landon
Jodie Abigail Landon is a student at Lawndale High. She often points out the lack of diversity in Lawndale, and is constantly stressed by the fact that she must be a perfect example for African Americans. As intelligent as Daria Morgendorffer but much more well-adjusted and social, Jodie has the brightest future out of her fellow students. Background An African-American, Landon is one of few black students seen at Daria's new school, Lawndale High. Her parents force her to do many activities to make her college application look good, as well as giving her good connections to the other Lawndale elite. At the end of the series, she goes behind her parents back and applies to a historically black college, so that there is not so much pressure on her to excel and she can relax for once. To her surprise, her father approves. Jodie is dating/involved with Mack. Heavily involved in school activities - "I'm president of the French Club, vice president of Student Council, editor of the yearbook, and I'm also on the tennis team" (Gifted) - Landon sees herself as a future leader of American black society. Being one of the few black students in her school inspires her to be more aware of black issues. Jodie does a lot of volunteer work, internships, and extra-curricular courses at the behest of her parents. In "Is It Fall Yet?", she was working for most of the summer and could barely see Mack. In "The F Word", she'd tried to get some time off and failed, sounding defeated and later stating bitterly that "my parents would rather I drop dead from exhaustion than miss the opportunity to shred some bribe-taking congressman's incriminating phone bills." She would apply to Turner behind her father's back, only to let him push her into choosing Crestmore despite being miserable about the decision. When Mack pointed out to Andrew that she'd applied without telling him, however, her parents let her choose Turner. (Michelle appears to have pushed Andrew into this. In "Gifted," there were implications she'd done the same thing so Jodie could avoid Grove Hills.) Relationships Daria Morgendorffer- Jodie is as smart as Daria, & one of the few characters outside of Jane Lane to have a relationship, albeit casual, with her. She sometimes looks for Daria to ask her a question or an opinion on something, though this often ends with a cynical response much to her annoyance. In return, she is one of the few people of Daria's age whom the cynical girl respects. She's also able to 'get' Daria's humor, unique among most of the students. The two girls have very different social views; Jodie is more gregarious and tends to favor certain practicality with her ethics, while Daria is a firm loner prefers to be more rigidly principled with her own. This leads to more than a few arguments between the girls, but ultimately they respect each other. Brittany Taylor- Like her boyfriend Marc Thompson, Jodie often finds herself on the receiving end of Brittany's love life issues. She often gives advice to Brittany, but sometimes likes to snap at her for being stupid. Most of the time, she is able to keep herself in check. She has delivered more than a few jabs at Brittany on such occasions but has enough self-control to only have said one explicit one (rent a brain). While Brittany considers Jodie one of her best friends, Jodie most likely considers Brittany a casual acquaintance. She mainly vents to Mack about Brittany's stupidity, & he in turn rants about Kevin Thompson & his dumb comments/nicknames. Despite this, Jodie is often cordial to Brittany. Marc Thompson- Mack is Jodie's boyfriend, & they are ultimately the most stable relationship at Lawndale High. They are rarely physically affectionate, despite revealing their sexual activity through banter with Daria. There is a bit of strain on the relationship due to Jodie's schedule, which is not unlike that of Helen Morgendorffer. this stress and frustration is presented as the defining factor of their relationship and it adds "they should sign up for a 12-step program--but she only has time for two". Jodie even questions why she dates him, whether it's because she genuinely likes him or "because he's who he is and you're who you are and others don't care to question the equation?" It is later revealed that the two get married & have two kids, but their relationship is intact only due to counseling. Her parents- Andrew Landon & Michele Landon have a complicated relationship with Jodie. Her parents have very high standards & expectations; they push Jodie to be the best in everything, always behave, & have a well-rounded college application. Despite their high standards, her parents are by turns loving & caring. All they want for their daughter is for her to be the best, & they want her to be an African American leader for black society. They can stress Jodie out, but at the end of the day, her parents love her & only want her to thrive. Personality Jodie is an intellectual girl, who has a very bright future. Despite her popularity, she is rather lonely, & tries to maintain relationships with outsiders. She is one of the few kids outside Jane who gets Daria's humor, & is in turn equally sarcastic when she doesn't feel the need to restrain herself. She has remarkable self-control, & is seen as mature & an advice-giver to people like Jane, Brittany, Kevin, & sometimes even Daria. She is a very social young girl, with high standards for herself & a massive heart for the community. She can by turns feel grateful & bitter for her role as the "Queen of the Negroes", but ultimately she uses her position for good. She is also nerdy too. Trivia * In the Latin American dubbing, she was voiced by Mónica Estrada (season 1) and Liliana Barba (season 2 onwards). * Jodie has five alter egos: Allied Jodie, Powderkeg Jodie, Cut-Loose & Running Free Jodie, Negligent Girlfriend Jodie, & Evil Jodie Category:Characters Category:Students Category:Landons Category:Females Category:Teenagers